Indigo Hands,nwritten by Sita Singh and illustrated by Maithili Joshi. Anne Schwartz Books, Penguin Random House. 2026. $26.99 ages 7 and up

"And so we head to the studio at last. 
In front of its carved wooden doors, 
we take off our shoes
and step inside. 

I've never seen so many shades of blue! 
Hanging on the walls are fabrics the 
color of the sunny sky, of the little 
flycatcher that sings outside my 
window, of the vast ocean."

Once her eyes open, Neela is excited to realize it is the day she and her Dadu are going to her grandfather's indigo studio. It's a long walk. As they go along, they pass the indigo patch where women in colorful saris work at trimming the branches of the tamarind trees. They carry those branches to the water tanks at the farm where the leaves will be soaked: it is a process Dadu calls fermentation. 

Neela does not understand where the beautiful blue comes from. Dadu explains oxidation which is the second part of the process. As they eat the lunch Dadu has brought along, they listen to the men singing and watch them work. After a nap, Neela and her grandfather press on to the studio where she sees the many wondrous shades of blue hanging all around them. It's time to get started creating Neela's own indigo cloth. It takes time again; the end result is magical. 

With indigo hands, the two show patience. Dadu tells his granddaughter about all the people around the world who grow indigo as they have done. When the cloth is finally ready to carry, it is time to make their way home after a very exciting day. It is a gift for her baby brother, given knowing that one day Neela will introduce him to dipping his hands in a pot of indigo as she has done. 

This is an important cultural tradition in Neela's family. That is evident as her grandfather leads her (and the book's readers) through every step of the process. Told from a child's perspective shows the importance of being introduced to an age-old tradition. Digital artwork does real justice to the many facets of the work done to create the depth and beauty of the lasting blue color. Backmatter includes an author's note, facts about indigo and its history, a glossary and a list of resources for further reading.